Christmas Day Bushfires Burn 116 Homes on Australia’s Great Ocean Road

Summary: Christmas Day bushfires burn 116 homes on Great Ocean Road, an Australian National Heritage coastal route in southeastern Australia's Victoria state.

Wye River Fire Brigade members Andrew Hack (front left), Captain Roy Moriarty (front center) and Max McCaffrey (back right); Wye River Fire Brigade Auxiliary president Christine Shaw and member Katrina Blake (first and second from right, second row); photo by Travis Hearn/CFA: CFA (County Fire Authority) @cfavic, via Facebook Dec. 26, 2015

Christmas Day bushfires have destroyed 116 homes along Great Ocean Road, a picturesque Australian National Heritage coastal route, in Australia’s southeastern state of Victoria as dry, windy conditions plague the hot Southern Hemisphere summer.

In a fire zone flyover, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews commends the no-lives-lost outcome. “This is really a very challenging fire but one -- in the planning and the execution, and indeed in terms of the outcomes -- where no person has been harmed. That’s something that we can be very proud of,” the premier observes.

A fire plan put in place earlier in the week plays out smoothly as evacuations are actioned before lunch on Christmas Day.

“They did it in a way that led the community with a lot of confidence, a great community in Wye River, and Separation Creek, to do what they have done,” notes Victoria State Emergency Service commissioner Craig Lapsley. “That’s one of the success factors. That is, they walked away from the fire that had every potential to be a killer, be a killer in every aspect with the intensity levels of that fire.”

A lightning strike on Dec. 19 serves as the fire starter for Christmas Day bushfires that, helped by hot winds, have burned thus far more than 20 square kilometers (2,000 hectares, or 7.7 square miles). A spokesperson for Victoria State Emergency Service confirms the destruction tally at 98 burned homes in the town of Wye River and, about half a mile (1+ kilometers) south, 18 burned homes in the village of Separation Creek.

The Christmas Day bushfires challenge around 500 firefighters and 13 firefighting aircraft. At a community meeting held the next day, Saturday, Dec. 26, in Torquay, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) to the north, where the Great Ocean Road starts, attendees are told that safety concerns will determine whether the County Fire Authority (CFA) will be able to return residents to their Separation Creek and Wye River properties in the afternoon. The attendees give a round of applause in appreciative recognition of phenomenal efforts by fire crews and volunteers.

“This fire doesn’t go away,” commissioner Lapsley notes in a news conference. “We will be back into hot, windy weather in January without a doubt. Everything’s available to burn.”

Separation Creek and Wye River are located on the Otway Coast region of the Great Ocean Road, about 96 miles (155 kilometers) southwest of Melbourne, Victoria’s capital. The popular coastal destination consists of five townships (Kennett River, Separation Creek, Sugarloaf, Wongara and Wye River) and includes the Great Otway National Park.

Australian and international tourists enjoy the park’s walking tracks, waterfalls and wildlife. Designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International, the Otways attract birders from around the world.

Closed on Christmas Day, the 29-mile (47-kilometer) stretch of the Great Ocean Road between Torquay and Lorne, a seaside town in the Surf Coast Shire about 9 miles (15 kilometers) north of Separation Creek, is reopened the next day, Boxing Day, a Commonwealth holiday traditionally celebrated the day after Christmas. The 24-mile (39-kilometer) stretch between Lorne and Skenes Creek, a popular surfing on-the-beach township located 13.6 miles (22 kilometers) south of Wye River, remains closed.

“We’re waiting for updates about what the situation is, and of course we are all thinking about our many friends who are in Wye River, or who have houses in Wye River or Separation,” Lorne resident Jeff Cooper tells 774 ABC Melbourne. “That is the most immediate thing. We’re really worried for them.”

Bushfires flare in Wye River, a small coastal town along the Otway Coast section of southeastern Australia's Great Ocean Road: CFA (County Fire Authority) @cfavic, via Facebook Dec. 25, 2015

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Wye River Fire Brigade members Andrew Hack (front left), Captain Roy Moriarty (front center) and Max McCaffrey (back right); Wye River Fire Brigade Auxiliary president Christine Shaw and member Katrina Blake (first and second from right, second row); photo by Travis Hearn/CFA: CFA (Country Fire Authority) @cfavic, via Facebook Dec. 26, 2015, @ https://www.facebook.com/cfavic/photos/a.456802769415.241316.7390614415/10153910434884416/

Bushfires flare in Wye River, a small coastal town along the Otway Coast section of southeastern Australia's Great Ocean Road: CFA (County Fire Authority) @cfavic, via Facebook Dec. 25, 2015, @ https://www.facebook.com/cfavic/photos/a.456802769415/10153907100174416/

For further information:

CFA (County Fire Authority) @cfavic. "Rain overnight has provided a reprieve from the Lorne fire, however the fire is not yet under control. . . .Photo courtesy of Keith Pakenham CFA." Facebook. Dec. 25, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/cfavic/photos/a.456802769415/10153907100174416/

CFA (County Fire Authority) @cfavic. "We would like to commend the Community Volunteers (wearing orange vests) who were vital to the successful evacuations of Wye River and Kennett River areas." Facebook. Dec. 26, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/cfavic/photos/a.456802769415.241316.7390614415/10153910434884416/

McCall, Christopher. "More than 100 homes lost in Australia's Christmas Day bushfires." Reuters > Technology. Dec. 26, 2015.
Available @ http://in.reuters.com/article/us-australia-bushfires-idINKBN0U900C20151226

Sarah Henderson MP @SHendersonMP. "Rye River from above. Some parts of town saved, other areas devastated. For all Great Ocean Rd, a fire plan vital." Twitter. Dec. 27, 2015. Tweet.
Available @ https://twitter.com/SHendersonMP/status/681328863364820992

The Telegraph. "Great Ocean Road bushfire in Australia claims 100 homes." YouTube. Dec. 26, 2015.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkyK1VR07JU

"Victorian bushfires: Three Surf Coast communities evacuated as Great Ocean Road conditions worsen." ABC Australia > News. Dec. 31, 2015.
Available @ http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-12-31/victorian-bushfires-coastal-residents-urged-to-evacuate/7061106